3M Raises Full-Year EPS Outlook to $9.10-$9.15, Shares Up 5%
MMM sits 23% above its 52-week low of $139.34.
Summary
3M lifted full-year adjusted EPS guidance to $9.10-$9.15 from $8.80-$8.95 after a strong third quarter. Adjusted EPS came in at $2.50 versus $2.23 a year ago, up 12%, on group sales of $6.6bn, up 1% with organic growth of 3.3%. Adjusted operating margin expanded 110 basis points to 26.2% on cost control and higher prices, and the safety and industrial unit — the largest division — grew sales 7% to $3.2bn, offsetting a 0.2% dip in consumer to $1.3bn. The stock is up about 5% on the session. This builds on the Q2 print in July, when 3M already raised guidance to $8.80-$8.95, and follows the October 19 8-K on the expanded Amazon commercial deal and share warrant at $164.89. The guidance raise is the actionable piece: it resets the earnings floor above the prior range and confirms margin expansion is holding.
At the time of this announcement, MMM was trading at $171.83 on NYSE in the Manufacturing sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $88.6B. The 52-week trading range was $139.34 to $184.90. This news item was assessed with positive market sentiment and an importance score of 7 out of 10. Source: ShareCast.